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it goes beyond seals and tokens, and having bid farewell to locks and doors, does it depart in the hands of burglars? And no robber could take the skill of a poor man, but wealth, not only a robber, but also a slanderer takes away from its possessors. And the poor man sits in the marketplace, cutting leather, or hammering gold or silver, or selling a garment, or some other necessity. But he who exults 83.661 in his wealth, and carries his body higher than his head, and waves his hands about, comes to this man with many bodyguards; and the one, as is likely, is sitting, either sewing leathers, or carving silver, or doing something else of the craft he pursues; while the other stands conversing with him, and signifying his need by his presence. Why then are you indignant, and accuse poverty, seeing that wealth is very much in need of it, and that those who have it are not able to live without it? Marvel at the one who has so wisely administered these things, extending money to these, and skills to those, and bringing them together into harmony and friendship through need. For the ones supply money, while the others provide the fruits of their skill. For poverty rivals in generosity, and conquers wealth with its gifts. For what that one has as useless, this one, transforming it through skill, shows to be necessary, and suitable for every need. And if one were to consider it carefully, poverty gathers the very materials of wealth; for it mines the gold and the silver, both bronze and iron, from which wealth is composed. For it is made by being collected from every skill, and the skills are peculiar to poverty. And again, taking these formless materials, poverty gives them shape and form, and makes rings, earrings, necklaces, furniture, wheels, drinking cups, and all the other things that puff up the jaw of the rich. If, then, wealth is composed by means of poverty, and poverty has wealth as a helper for its skills, why do you accuse of inequality what is equality? Why do you call friendly things contrary? Why do you slander a society, through which life is more pleasing for both the poor and the rich? For both the one and the other, receiving what is lacking from each other, fulfill the need. But perhaps you might say: Why is it that the majority of the wealthy live with injustice? Why are not all of them pupils of justice? But here again you take away free will, and you deprive the living being of the honor which it received from its Maker. And otherwise, the workers of wickedness would have much room for defense, if in the present life the judge had assigned wealth to the just alone. For they would have said what their teacher uttered against Job: "That you have hedged in all that is within and without their house, you have multiplied for them grain and wine; but send forth your hand, and touch all that they have, 83.664 and surely they will bless you to your face." These things those who live with wickedness would have said, if only the pupils of virtue had received the gift of wealth. But since the Creator set forth poverty and wealth in the midst, like certain materials, and some use these for the acquisition of virtue, while others for a pretext of wickedness, there remains no excuse of pardon for either the rich or the poor who live with wickedness. For those who have managed their wealth well and properly, and have not increased it by the misfortunes of others and have taken the needy as partners in their prosperity, are sufficient for the accusation of those who have used wealth unjustly and greedily; and those who have mingled poverty with philosophy, and have borne its attacks with endurance and nobility, will become true accusers of those who have learned wickedness in poverty. And behold also the other dispensation of the Governor, that you may offer to him your hymnody more fervently. For since he saw much pampering around the wealthy, he allotted health to poverty. And the

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σφραγῖδας ὑπερβαίνει καὶ σήμαντρα, καὶ κλείθροις καὶ θύραις ἐῤῥῶσθαι φράσας, ταῖς τῶν τοιχωρύχων χερσὶν ἐναπέρχεται; Καὶ τὴν μὲν τέχνην τοῦ πένητος οὐδεὶς ἂν λάβοι λῃστὴς, τὸν δὲ πλοῦτον, οὐ λῃστὴς μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ συκοφάντης ἀφαιρεῖται τοὺς κεκτημένους. Καὶ ὁ μὲν πένης ἐπὶ τῆς ἀγορᾶς κάθηται, σκυτοτομῶν, ἢ χρυ σὸν ἐλαύνων, ἢ ἄργυρον, ἢ ἐσθῆτα, ἢ ἄλλο τι τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἀποδιδόμενος. Ὁ δὲ ἐπὶ τῷ πλούτῳ γαυ 83.661 ριῶν, καὶ τὸ σῶμα ὑπὲρ τὴν κεφαλὴν αἴρων, καὶ τὰς χεῖρας περιφέρων, μετὰ τῶν πολλῶν δορυφόρων παρὰ τοῦτον φοιτᾷ· καὶ ὁ μὲν, ὡς εἰκὸς, κάθηται, ἢ τὰ δέρματα ῥάπτων, ἢ διαγλύφων τὸν ἄργυρον, ἢ ἄλλο τι δρῶν ἧς μετέρχεται τέχνης· ὁ δὲ ἕστηκε προσδιαλεγόμενος, καὶ τὴν χρείαν τῇ παρουσίᾳ ση μαίνων. Τί τοίνυν ἀγανακτεῖς, καὶ τῆς πενίας κατ ηγορεῖς, ὁρῶν τὸν πλοῦτον ταύτης μάλα δεόμε νον, καὶ τοὺς τοῦτον ἔχοντας ταύτης ἄνευ διαβιῶ ναι μὴ δυναμένους; Θαύμασον τὸν οὕτω ταῦτα σοφῶς πρυτανεύσαντα, καὶ τούτοις μὲν χρήματα, τούτοις δὲ τέχνας ὀρέγοντα, καὶ εἰς ὁμόνοιαν καὶ φιλίαν διὰ τῆς χρείας συνάγοντα. Οἱ μὲν γὰρ χορ ηγοῦσι χρήματα, οἱ δὲ παρέχουσι τὰ τῆς τέχνης βλα στήματα. Ἀντιφιλοτιμεῖται γὰρ ἡ πενία, καὶ νικᾷ τοῖς δώροις τὸν πλοῦτον. Ἃ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος ὡς ἄχρηστα ἔχει, ταῦτα διὰ τῆς τέχνης αὕτη μεταποιοῦσα, ἀναγ καῖα δείκνυσι, καὶ πρὸς πᾶσαν ἐπιτήδεια χρείαν. Εἰ δέ τις ἀκριβῶς καταμάθοι, καὶ αὐτὰς τοῦ πλούτου τὰς ὕλας ἡ πενία συλλέγει· αὕτη γὰρ μεταλλεύει τὸν χρυσὸν καὶ τὸν ἄργυρον, χαλκόν τε καὶ σίδηρον, δι' ὧν ὁ πλοῦτος συνίσταται. Ἐκ πάσης γὰρ τέχνης ἐρανιζόμενος γίνεται, αἱ δὲ τέχναι τῆς πενίας ἴδιαι. Καὶ ταύτας δὲ πάλιν τὰς ἀμόρφους ὕλας ἡ πενία λα βοῦσα, εἰδοποιεῖ καὶ μορφοῖ, καὶ κατασκευάζει δα κτυλίους, ἕρματα, περιδέραια, ἔπιπλα, κύκλους, ἐκπώματα, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ὅσα τῶν πλουσίων τὴν γνάθον φυσᾷ. Εἰ τοίνυν καὶ ὁ πλοῦτος διὰ τῆς πενίας συνίσταται, καὶ ἡ πενία τὸν πλοῦτον ἔχει τῶν τεχνῶν ἐπίκουρον, τί ἀνισότητα κατηγορεῖς τῆς ἰσότητος; Τί δὲ ἐναντία τὰ φίλα προσαγορεύεις; Τί δὲ πολιτείαν διαβάλλεις, δι' ἧς καὶ τοῖς πένησι καὶ τοῖς πλουσίοις ὁ βίος ἐστὶ θυμηρέστερος; Παρ' ἀλ λήλων γὰρ καὶ οὗτοι κἀκεῖνοι τὸ ἐνδέον λαμβάνον τες, ἀναπληροῦσι τὴν χρείαν. Ἀλλ' ἴσως ἂν εἴποις· Τί δήποτε τῶν εὐπόρων οἱ πλείους ἀδικίᾳ συζῶσι; διὰ τί δὲ οὐχ ἅπαντες δι καιοσύνης ὑπάρχουσι τρόφιμοι; Ἀλλὰ πάλιν κἀν ταῦθα τὸ αὐτεξούσιον ἀφαιρῇ, καὶ ἀποστερεῖς τὸ ζῶον τιμῆς, ἣν παρὰ τοῦ Πεποιηκότος ἐδέξατο. Ἄλλως τε δὲ καὶ πολλὴν ἂν χώραν ἀπολογίας ἔλα βον οἱ τῆς κακίας ἐργάται, εἰ κατὰ τὸν παρόντα βίον μόνοις τοῖς δικαίοις τὸν πλοῦτον ἀπένειμεν ὁ κριτής. Εἶπον γὰρ ἂν, ἅπερ αὐτῶν ὁ διδάσκαλος κατὰ τοῦ Ἰὼβ ἐφθέγξατο· «Ὅτι σὺ περιέφραξας τὰ ἔσωθεν καὶ τὰ ἔξωθεν τῆς οἰκίας αὐτῶν πάντα, σῖτον καὶ οἶνον ἐπλήθυνας αὐτοῖς· ἀλλ' ἀπό στειλον τὴν χεῖρά σου, καὶ ἅψαι πάντων ὧν ἔχουσιν, 83.664 ἢ μὴν εἰς πρόσωπόν σε εὐλογήσουσι.» Ταῦτα ἂν εἶπον οἱ τῇ κακίᾳ συζῶντες, εἰ μόνοι οἱ τῆς ἀρετῆς τρόφιμοι τοῦ πλούτου τὸ δῶρον ἐδέξαντο. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ προὔθηκε μὲν πενίαν καὶ πλοῦτον εἰς μέσον, οἷόν τινας ὕλας, ὁ Ποιητὴς, χρῶνται δὲ τού τοις τινὲς μὲν εἰς ἀρετῆς κτῆσιν, τινὲς δὲ εἰς κα κίας ὑπόθεσιν, οὔτε πλουσίοις, οὔτε πένησι κακίᾳ συζῶσιν ὑπολείπεται συγγνώμης πρόφασις. Οἵ τε γὰρ τὸν πλοῦτον εὖ καὶ καλῶς οἰκονομήσαντες, καὶ μήτε συμφοραῖς ἀλλοτρίαις τοῦτον αὐξή σαντες καὶ κοινωνοὺς τῆς εὐπορίας τοὺς δεομένους λαβόντες, ἀποχρῶσιν εἰς κατηγορίαν τῶν ἀδίκως καὶ πλεονεκτικῶς χρησαμένων τῷ πλούτῳ· οἵ τε τὴν πενίαν φιλοσοφίᾳ κεράσαντες, καὶ καρτερικῶς αὐτῆς καὶ γενναίως τὰς προσβολὰς ἐνεγκόντες, ἀληθεῖς κατήγοροι τῶν ἐν πενίᾳ τὴν κακουργίαν μεμαθηκό των γενήσονται. Βλέπε δὲ καὶ τὴν ἄλλην τοῦ Κυβερ νήτου οἰκονομίαν, ἵνα θερμότερον αὐτῷ προσενέγκῃς τὴν ὑμνῳδίαν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ πολλὴν εἶδε περὶ τοὺς πλουτοῦντας τὴν θεραπείαν, ὑγείαν συνεκλήρωσε τῇ πενίᾳ. Καὶ ὁ